After spending a few hours washing / polishing / sealing I can say that yes... it does look a lot like MINI Hot Chocolate... perhaps just a tad bit lighter and the metal flake is a little bit smaller (the sparkle is toned down just a bit vs MINI HC).
I was told today that quote," have no right not to like the Fiat 500. drive a MINI. Owning a MINI and not liking the Fiat 500 makes no sense. They are the same kind of car." I wasn't sure where to go with that. I just nodded and walked away.
LOL... in Italy the Fiat 500 is just another small car. I didnt see any performance drivers there on the autostrada.. they were always in the slowlane driving totally sensable.. SOoooo... much that we NEVER were passed by ONE in the 3 weeks we're in country!! Cute?? Nope!! Fast?? ?????? They were passed by a Fiat PANDA all the time!! Retro..hell yes!! come on.. a F (fix )I (it) A (again) T (tony) Just me..................................... Thumper
I guess I may be in the minority here. Personally I like them, enough to buy one you might ask, well no. They are nice little transport pods & for every one I see on the road I figure there is one less gas hog SUV clogging the left lane. I am seeing more on the roads around here & for me that's a good thing. Stories of new Fiat's sitting in dealers service departments does not surprise me at all. I think we've heard MINI stories like that too. Fiat has not learned much in the 20 or so years they have been away. In the past their dealer network & service was atrocious. They seem to be heading down the same path now. My guess is that Chrysler sees them as a pain in the arse not their savior.
Here ya go... [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVeSL1AMc5k]Cut Down of Jlo's Papi Music Video featuring FIAT - YouTube[/ame]
This old fart thinks it was a stupid commercial to sell a car with. Wonder how many pesos they spent on that? ut:
Here's the actual Papi music video. From what I understand, Fiat paid for product placement, then created an ad out of bits and pieces from the music video. Apparently the Papi video is popular and well known (nearly 12 million views on YouTube atm) and those who know the video will 'get' the Fiat ad, but maybe not so much for the demographics of MINI owners. [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XbIuSLaCnk]Jennifer Lopez - Papi - YouTube[/ame]
In a way, I can see where the person was coming from, although they could have phrased if differently. You are correct, a Fiat is NOT a MINI in so many ways, but it is a small, retro type car, that is trying to make a come back. I look at the MINI, the VW Bug and the Fiat as being, loosely, in the same category. If you look at it from the "which one is better" viewpoint, clearly MINI is on top, but I like the Bug and the Fiat, even though I don't feel the need to own one. Over time, who knows, I would like to see them succeed. Jim
I agree with you completely, but is there no room for another small retro car in the US of A. We are starting to sound like brand snobs, IMHO, MINI or nothing. I won't give up my MINI, but come on, there is room for others. I think we should be supportive, even if they are falling short right now. Jim
Damn right I'm a MINI snob! That's why I'm on this site- I don't have to say anything nice about other cars if I don't want to :devil: There are a lot of other cars out there I like... But the Fiat is not one of them :frown2: